By Lexi MooreAs students learn new skills, they often produce work that tops that of even the most skilled teachers.Members of the Hills-Beaver Creek Patriot Millworks group took the lessons they learned last semester and produced several handcrafted furniture items.The students, under the instruction of Ray Vander Wolde, created 13 different types of wood furniture.The class used raw materials and tools in the industrial arts building to produce items including a bedroom dresser, a coffee table and a curio cabinet.Vander Wolde encouraged the students to pay attention to the small details when constructing their pieces. For example, they rounded edges, which is time-consuming but enhances the quality and value of the item.H-BC has had a Millworks program for more than a decade. In the past, the students have sold their work to area furniture stores and local residents. They have installed custom-designed kitchen cabinets and made entertainment centers.The money they make from the sales is used to fund the program and to purchase materials for the classroom. Unfortunately, when Vander Wolde met with store owners this year, they were not interested in buying the pieces. After several attempts, he decided the pieces would have to be sold at the school instead of at a retail store.Not wanting the program to face the same circumstances next year, he asked store owners what they would be interested in purchasing. They suggested the students work on gun cabinets and custom pieces.Once the decision had been made to try to sell the items in Hills, the students moved the pieces they had made into the hallway of the high school. They priced and labeled each piece of furniture with the hope that local residents will be interested in making a purchase.The furniture is priced from $50 to $580, which is low considering the quality of the materials used.This year 22 students are participating in Patriot Millworks. Some are learning woodworking for the first time, but many others have been constructing items out of wood for years.